April 17, 2014 - European pilots welcome the
landmark decision of the Court of Amsterdam on
Ryanair’s defamation claims against the Dutch TV
channel KRO. The court held that KRO provided
sufficient evidence to support its claims about
Ryanair’s company culture and fuel policy, as
made during the two-episode program which also
won a prize for investigative journalism in 2013
“Brandpunt Reporter”.

Ryanair is an Irish low-cost airline, located in
Ireland, with its primary operational bases at
Dublin Airport and London Stansted Airports.
Ryanair's route network serves 28 countries in
Europe and also Morocco. The company operates
303 Boeing 737–800 aircraft. The company success
is based on a low-cost business model.

In a verdict published on April 16, the court
declared that the serious allegations about
Ryanair’s fuel policy as well as the company
“fear culture” are sufficiently supported by
facts and evidence obtained by KRO in
preparation for the broadcast. The court ruled
that the investigative program “Brandpunt
Reporter” was handled correctly and provided
sufficient evidence and right of response to
Ryanair. It added that this topic is of great
public interest and that KRO was right to cover
it.

“Yesterday’s verdict is watched closely by the
entire pilot community in Europe. It is a
victory not only for KRO TV but for the entire
aviation industry,” says Nico Voorbach,
President of the European Cockpit Association.

“This court ruling will re-balance our
confidence in safety reporting mechanisms as
well as the need for pilots to publicly express
concerns if they feel the regulatory authorities
are not listening to them. The verdict is also a
validation of our professional integrity and our
ultimate role as commanders to take decisions
independently, based on our expertise and
professionalism, without fear of being dismissed
or demoted. The cases reported by KRO seem
serious enough for the European Aviation Safety
Agency to investigate and act. This way we can
ensure passenger safety in Europe.”

This ruling ensures KRO does not need to retract the
broadcasts or remove them from the Internet. The court
specifically acknowledges that safety concerns regarding
the airline have been supported by sufficient evidence.
Finally, the court ruling orders Ryanair to cover the
costs of the legal proceedings.

“The true value of the decision is that it sends an
unmistakable message,” says Philip von Schöppenthau, ECA
Secretary General. “It is regrettable that the chilling
effect of legal activity by a company against pilots,
professional associations and the media may have the
effect of suppressing important information of public
interest. It cannot be excluded that further events
involving fuel emergencies in the recent past have not
been reported in the media. Hopefully, the decision will
lift any self-imposed censorship and retractions by some
media in the face of legal or commercial pressure that
we notice recently in Europe.”

In
2012 and 2013 “Brandpunt Reporter” broadcasted a
two-episode TV investigation in which Ryanair pilots,
speaking anonymously, raised concerns about the
airline’s fuel policies and company culture. The pilots
revealed that the company may be exerting pressure on
them to minimize the amount of fuel they take on board a
practice which limits significantly the fuel costs for
the company but could jeopardize safety in certain
circumstances.

The direct reasons for this broadcast were 3 emergency
landings of Ryanair aircraft in Valencia Spain on the
July 26, 2012, within a short timeframe due to low fuel
levels. In a second episode of “Brandpunt Reporter”,
anonymous Ryanair pilots expressed concerns about a
“fear” culture in the company to penalize them or
pressure them to fly even when sick or tired. Ryanair
denied the allegations, requested rectifications of the
TV episodes and initiated legal proceedings, accusing
KRO of unlawful and negligent conduct.

In 2013 the program “Mayday Mayday” was nominated in
the ‘De loep’ - the Dutch-Flemish journalist
investigation competition. The jury rewarded Marco
de Lange and Bart Nijpels for their outstanding
investigative work and selected their documentary as
the best audio-visual production.